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In
the last few weeks I have had the opportunity to visit Florida, Oregon,
Colorado, Southern California (its own state), Arizona, Texas, and
Florida again. Most are pretty optimistic about the biz but cautious
about staffing up for refi business. Along those lines, what does "6 to
75" mean to you? If you're a correspondent lender, it means the
approximate number of correspondent investors there were in 2008 versus
now. If you're a warehouse lender, it means the approximate number of
warehouse banks there were in 2008 versus now. This is nowhere near
exact, but it is indeed interesting. What does it say about the
industry? Darned if I know - but with plenty of higher net worth lenders
dealing with the agencies directly, what does that leave for the scores
of investors offering correspondent programs?

On the legal front, Standard & Poor's has agreed to pay $1.5 billion
to the U.S. Department of Justice, 19 states, Washington, D.C., and the
California Public Employees' Retirement System to resolve lawsuits over
ratings of mortgage securities. S&P did not admit to violating any
law but acknowledged that in 2005, executives delayed implementation of
models that offered more negative ratings.

Allstate Insurance Co. agreed to settle a 2011 lawsuit accusing Morgan Stanley of fraud over more than $100 million worth of mortgage-backed securities in which the insurer invested.

And
under the "misery loves company" heading, stories continue to circulate
about how U.S. prosecutors are turning their attention to Moody's Investors Service
to determine whether the firm inflated credit ratings on mortgage
derivatives to gain business before the financial crisis. After a
settlement with Standard & Poor's regarding a similar allegation,
the Connecticut and Mississippi attorneys general said they and other
prosecutors are investigating Moody's.

Switching gears to more forward-looking events, Ginger Bell
writes, "In November last year I posted a link to take a survey on what
your company is doing to manage your training. The results of the
survey show that 90% of those surveyed see their budget increasing for training in 2015. Over
60% do not hire internal training staff which leaves a gap in providing
training for the industry. Largest area for needing help with training
is in the area of Rules and Regs with over 90% of those surveyed
looking for assistance, followed by over 70% looking for help with
policies and procedures. Your readers can read the results here."

Nine of the nation's top producing loan originators will be sharing their insights and best practices at the upcoming Top Producer Round Table event
series that starts Feb. 12 in San Diego. The series goes on to Los
Angeles, Irvine, San Ramon, Portland, Seattle, Scottsdale and Vegas in
February, and then on to New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore and
Washington DC in March. The events are from 10:00am - 1:00pm local time,
and "feature a packed agenda with back-to-back presentations and live Q
& A. Top Producer Round Table is
designed to inspire originators with best practices from top producing
loan originators from different parts of the country, and a 60-day plan
of action to implement. Topics include how to save time and create more
efficiency in your loan process, how to grow Realtor relationships in
light of the CFPB's recent rulings on MSAs, and how to diversify your
sources of business to include CPAs attorneys and financial advisors."

The Title Report is offering an in-depth 60-minute Webinar providing tips for building business relationships with lenders, real estate brokers and other partners.
"This specialized training will provide the necessary insights and
direction to give you an edge on your competition while remaining RESPA
compliant. Noted compliance attorney Loretta Salzano of Franzén and
Salzano, P.C., and Dr. Cynthia McGovern of Orange Leaf Consulting, will
instruct on how to articulate your value in order to differentiate your
services, what lenders look for and how to foster long-term, sustainable
business relationships with your partners. It will be held February 11th from 2-3EST."

Essent Guaranty
offers "essentials training programs". Many training topics are
available throughout the month of February. Click the link to view the
list of classes.

Wisconsin Mortgage Bankers Association (WMBA)
and the Home Buyers Round Table of Dane County are joining together to
offer a valuable training for lenders. This lender's down payment
assistance training is designed to enhance awareness of the various
products that are available for your buyers. Register by February 13th for this event. For details, click here.

Yesterday in a reference to Greystone
achieving Program Plus status with Freddie Mac for multifamily lending,
I misstated that this designation applied to the Greystone Healthcare
Lending Group. Greystone's overall multifamily platform will be tasked
in using this program for financing all sizes of apartment buildings.

Speaking of Freddie, a
judge rebuffed shareholders' challenge of the U.S. government's 2012
decision to transfer nearly all profit from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
to the Treasury Department. U.S. District Judge Robert Pratt dismissed a case
against the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the Treasury Department.
Another case is pending in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.

The markets didn't do much yesterday after the non-sensational ISM and ADP figures. The more interesting news, however, was produced by the MBA in its application index.
Sure, apps rose 1.3% last week (purchases were down 2.3% while refis
were up 2.5%). As lock desks noticed, FHA purchases and refis shot up
with the change in the FHA MIP cut going into effect. The FHA sub-index
is viewed as a volatile series with a small sample size and "experts"
hesitate to draw too many inferences on the magnitude of refi reaction
based on that number. Analysts have seen non-bank, non-traditional
lenders playing a larger role in FHA lending - and many of these lenders
may not be a part of the index. The MIP cut effect is likely to be
smaller than the previous MIP cut implemented in 2012 for pre-June 2009
borrowers. And the winter storm in the northeast soaked up a couple
business days.

There has not been much volatility, and for numbers we
closed out the 10-yr Wednesday at 1.75% and this morning we're sitting
around 1.77% with Initial Jobless Claims ahead of us. Agency MBS prices
are roughly unchanged.

Jobs and Announcements

In the retail arena, iServe is adding to its retail branch and LO network.
"This national mortgage lender is truly one who believes in providing
their loan officers and branches with a comprehensive strategic
partnership. A founder and Co-CEO Doug Wilson explains, 'We believe our
loan officers are our customers.' Wilson goes on to state that iServe's
user friendly team environment and can-do attitude produce a culture
which results in a much higher degree of success for every loan officer
and branch. 'Always mindful that there is a borrower and referral
partner at the end of every transaction, iServe
provides a support team that closes your loans on time and a philosophy
that understands the importance of your referral partners,' states
Wilson. 'With support such as a dedicated Marketing Department to
increase your production and direct access to your personal Operations
Team, including an underwriting hotline for loan scenarios, you can be
confident that iServe will put you on the path for long term success
with both increased and faster fundings'. In the Western U.S. contact Allen Friedman, and for the Eastern U.S. contact Dennis Phillips.

On the wholesale & correspondent side of things, Parkside Lending, a national wholesale and correspondent lender, is expanding. "We were named one of the Top Mortgage Employers in America for 2015 based on employee feedbackper National Mortgage Professional Magazine,
January 2015. Our Customers like us because we help them close more
loans with our sensible approach to underwriting, innovative suite of
mortgage products, and proprietary technology. Furthermore, because we
don't serve the retail channel, our clients can be confident that we
will never compete for their customers. We are looking for AEs across the US and key operations staff. We are seeking an experienced head of national underwriting
to fill a highly visible position, as well as other key openings for
Underwriters, Client Service team members and Closing/Funding staff. Our
operational personnel can work from our HQ in San Francisco or any one
of our five satellite offices across the country." Some positions can
even be set up to work remotely from home. Interested parties should
contact Rick@parksidelending. com or apply at Parkside Lending.

On the Ops side, PRMG
is looking for experienced underwriters to help support its production
volume and growth as management continues to expand their footprint
across the country. "Growing nationwide and hiring, Paramount Residential Mortgage Group, Inc. (PRMG) has been a leading privately held mortgage banker 'built by originators for originators'.
With numerous accolades under their belt including being ranked no. 2
of the top 50 companies to work for in America they are actively hiring
experienced Government and Conventional Underwriters to help support the continued growth and demands of their ever-expanding national Retail, Wholesale and Correspondent
divisions '2015 is already off to a prosperous start for all of us here
at PRMG.' said, CEO, Paul Rozo. 'We are a progressive company that
supports underwriters working remotely from their home. We are confident
that our national sales efforts, coupled with expanding our operational
teams, will greatly help in supporting and serving our regions across
the United States.' PRMG has over 800 employees nationally and is licensed in 47 states with nearly 50 branches located throughout the country." Contact HR@prmg.net for a complete job description or confidential inquiries.

On the flip side Bank of America has announced it is planning to lay off more than 200 employees
from its legacy mortgage servicing operations in its Norfolk, Virginia,
office that handles troubled mortgages.

Speaking of banks, here in Florida last year the Seminole Tribe had
expressed interest in buying Mackinac Savings Bank ($111 million in
assets) but has now withdrawn its agreement. The Tribe did so reportedly
because it would have faced expanded lending restrictions under banking regulations, and will instead look into setting up a credit union. By the way, the Seminole Tribe of Florida is a "Federally Recognized Indian Tribe" and is the only tribe in America who never signed a peace treaty!

And there is plenty of other banking news.
Indiana's Old National Bank ($11.0B) will sell 12 branches in Illinois
to First Mid-Illinois Bank & Trust ($1.6B, IL), and will also sell 5
other branches to MainSource Bank ($2.9B, IN). But management isn't
done, also announcing they will close or consolidate another 19 branch
locations (which is in addition to the 17 branches it is selling above)
in the coming months. Firstmerit Bank ($24.6B, OH) said it will close 16
branches in four states (4 in IL, 4 in MI, 7 in OH, 1 in WI) as it
responds to changing customer trends and increased use of online and
mobile banking. Ameris Bank ($4.0B, GA) will acquire Merchants &
Southern Bank ($398mm, FL) for $50mm in cash. Ameris will also acquire
18 branches holding about $812mm in deposits in FL and GA from Bank of
America for an undisclosed sum. Tri Counties Bank ($2.8B, CA) said it
has closed 8 branches related to its acquisition of North Valley
Bancorp, as it seeks to streamline business operations. In the Rocky
Mountain High state, NBH Bank ($4.8B) will acquire Pine River Valley
Bank ($142mm) for about $14mm in cash. In Georgia Community &
Southern Bank ($3.6B) will acquire Community Business Bank ($146mm).

About the Author

Rob Chrisman began his career in mortgage banking - primarily capital markets - 27 years ago in 1985 with First California Mortgage, assisting in Secondary Marketing until 1988, when he joined Tuttle & Co., a leading mortgage pipeline risk management...
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